Quick bites in Anchorage: Satisfying smash burgers, considerable cheesesteaks and a bounty of birria

This is an installment of quick bites, an occasional feature that collects short write-ups of surprising forkfuls, unsung eateries and hidden gems on ordinary menus. Believe me, I could happily write a thousand words about a single ice cream cone, a perfect bite of corned beef hash or a beautifully balanced breakfast burrito. But when it comes to food writing, sometimes just enough is as good as a feast.

Smashed Anchorage

I was briefly bereft when Jason Anderson’s grilled cheese operation, Melt, closed up shop a few years back. So, when I heard about his new(er) food truck, Smashed Anchorage, holding down long-weekend hours in residence outside Magnetic North Brewing Co., I took heart. And now that I’ve eaten there, all is forgiven. These are some pretty top-notch burgers. Plus, there’s still a lot of cheese involved.

One of Melt’s strengths was its tight, focused menu. It did one classic thing, and did it well. Smashed Anchorage offers the same sort of philosophy. The menu is short and sweet with an emphasis on quality, technique and craft.

I’ve blathered on before about the science behind smashed burgers and their quantifiably provable superiority to their sadly un-smashed brethren. So I won’t do it again — but check out J. Kenji Lopez-Alt at Serious Eats for the science lesson about the Maillard reaction. Because it’s interesting and he rules. Unscientifically, a smashed burger maximizes the crispy, smoky, charred, crumbly bits of the patty — the best bits, in other words — while retaining a juicy patty. Smashed burgers are just a wee bit shaggy, spilling out haphazardly over the sides of the bun. These burgers are more interested in tasting good than looking good.

My family dropped by recently and ordered one of each of the truck’s staple burgers — there’s also a pop-up burger that changes weekly.

The burgers, with their soft, glossy brioche-style buns, stacked high and thoughtfully with well-balanced toppings are classic Americana, each with a little twist that surprises and elevates. The Break-up Smash Burger with American cheese, shaved onion, and pickles delivers a nuanced note of garlic in each bite via the decadent garlic aioli.

The Double-up Smash Burger is cheesy, smoky, drippy, briny from pickles, salty from bacon, creamy from mayo. It’s a “more is more,” five-napkin burger.

The Mag Mac contains all of the above plus a “mag sauce,” which is pure road-trip drive-thru nostalgia. I love the soft, slightly sweet bun and the crisp shreds of lettuce that form a kind of creamy-crispy slaw. This burger has all the best parts of the fast-food burger-that-shall-not-be-named without any of its shortcomings — that is to say, the patty itself. In place of the dry, tasteless hockey puck we’ve come to know and tolerate is a charred, well-seasoned patty of tasty beef.

If you go:

Smashed Anchorage

Magnetic North Brewing Co.

8861 Golovin St.

www.magneticnorthbrewingco.com/smashed-anchorage

Thursday-Sunday: 4-8 p.m.

AK House of Birria

It’s only been a few years since Anchorage was a darker, sadder place — a birria desert. Happily, times have changed, and most people can access birria in abundance. And if you don’t have birria tacos in your neighborhood, don’t worry. Alaska House of Birria, a nimble food truck, popping up at locations from South Anchorage to Eagle River, may already be on its way to you.

Birria tacos, for the uninitiated, hold a rich, savory beef stew steeped in herbs, spices, garlic, and chilis that is slow braised to fall-apart, back-of-the fork tenderness. But wait, there’s more. The stew is stuffed into a corn tortilla with cheese, onions and cilantro, and then the whole construction is dunked into the birria before being fried to a crispy, crackly, pleasantly greasy, almost translucent crunch. But wait, there’s more. The tacos are served up with a deep cup of rich, spicy, savory “consommé” into which you can dunk the whole darned thing. It’s the perfect marriage of homemade slow-cooked wholesomeness with deep-fried restaurant-food decadence. Robust and filling, as well as drippy, juicy, crunchy and herbaceous, these aren’t for the faint of heart or for people wearing crisp white shirts.

If you go:

AK House of Birria

907-227-5813

Check social media for locations and hours.

Mammoth Cheesesteak

I have been excited to try Mammoth Cheesesteaks since they opened their doors — on wheels — in 2021. I finally caught up with them holding lunchtime court in the parking lot of Credit Union 1 on Abbott Road (don’t snooze on this location for rotating food trucks throughout the summer). I’m so glad to finally be in the know.

Their menu is straight and to the point with three varieties of cheesesteaks, one rotating special, truffle fries, and garlic cheese curds. I ordered one of each of the sandwiches because I’m the consummate journalist with a profound respect for thorough research. I also ordered the cheese curds because … cheese curds.

You can opt for either Cheez Whiz or provolone on each sandwich, and I chose Cheez Whiz for the Original Philly and provolone for both the Pepper Steak and The Mammoth varieties.

Full disclosure: I have never eaten an authentic Philly in Philadelphia. In fact, I have only been to Philadelphia once and I was 9 years old. I carry absolutely no Philly credibility. In other words, Philly fans, don’t at me.

The marketing meeting to name the food truck must have been pretty short. The cheesesteaks are, in fact, mammoth. I cut each sandwich into thirds and even a few bites of each made for a big lunch. Do not read this as a complaint.

The Original Philly, the simplest by far, stuffed with steak, onion, and Cheez Whiz, is gooey, juicy and decadent. However, the Cheese Whiz adds a fair amount of additional salt to an already salty dish. Highly seasoned, I would call it, and that, for me, is saying something. My husband always says that if I were a deer at a salt lick, I would pronounce it to be underseasoned. So, plan to eat this sandwich with an ice cold beer if one’s handy — Mammoth makes stops at Onsite, Brewerks and Girdwood Brewing Co., among others.

This leads me to the Mammoth, which is stuffed with steak, bacon, mushrooms, green peppers and onions. I would definitely recommend choosing provolone for this overstuffed behemoth, especially in light of the additional salt from the bacon. I might even doctor it up with fresh or candied jalapenos to cut through the salinity. This sandwich is almost comically huge and I was sure that eating it would be a Dagwood-style mess. But the meat is so tender, well portioned and properly trimmed, the vegetables are so meltingly soft and caramelized, with the cheese acting as a delicious binder, that it’s actually quite tidy to eat.

Which leads me, like Goldilocks, to the third, just-right sandwich: the Pepper Steak. All three sandwiches were delicious, but the Pepper Steak is, for me, perfection. The earthy sweetness of the peppers and onions cut right through the richness of the steak and cheese, making for a decadent but beautifully balanced sandwich. Like the others, this is a well-thought-out piece of sandwich architecture. Overstuffed and plentiful, the sandwich holds together, and I think could even be eaten with one hand.

Which brings me to the garlic cheese curds. I have three things to say about them. 1. I loved these crispy, melty, delicious morsels of cheese. 2. Do not plan on any kissing, whispering or elevator conversations after eating these. And 3. The little bag they come in fits nicely into the cupholder in my car. So do with that information what you will.

If you go:

Mammoth Cheesesteak

www.mammothcheesesteaks.com

907-306-5542

Check website calendar and social media for locations and hours.